City wants to meet with county, PennDOT on bus merger

By SAM GALSKI (Staff Writer)
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Published: April 19, 2012

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ERIC CONOVER/Staff Photographer
Toby Fauver, deputy secretary for local and area transportation for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, talks about merging Hazleton Public Transit with Luzerne County Transportation Authority on Wednesday during a Hazleton City Council meeting at City Hall.

City administrators want to meet with Luzerne County and state transportation officials to discuss fundamentals of a proposed busing services merger before recommending whether Hazleton City Council should rescind a prior vote approving the consolidation.

Following a nearly two-hour public meeting at City Hall on Wednesday, Hazleton administrators, council members and representatives from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation blamed poor communication for concerns and misunderstandings that recently brought council to the brink of rescinding a 5-0 vote cast last year in support of consolidation.

City officials adjourned after agreeing to have Bob Sharp, division chief for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, mediate future talks between city administrators, Hazleton Public Transit director Steve Hahn, Luzerne County Transportation Authority representatives and Luzerne County Council.

The meeting, which has yet to be scheduled, will give officials the opportunity to establish principles of a merger agreement and address concerns raised by city council. Council members have questioned Hazleton's representation on LCTA's board of directors and whether HPT's share of state operating assistance funding will continue to be funneled to LCTA while the local transportation agency depletes a $2 million reserve.

Merging Hazleton Public Transit with LCTA has been touted by Toby Fauver, PennDOT's deputy secretary for local and area transportation, as a way to cut duplicated administrative costs and funnel savings into technology and other components that would improve transportation services.

Fauver said Wednesday that while PennDOT will not dictate the role and responsibilities of each agency if a merger occurs, but said Sharp would work to "sort of referee issues that come up.

"In my opinion, a consolidation from the riders' perspective will be perfectly seamless," he said. "They will never experience a loss in service. It could be better service because the money being spent on administration is now being spent on services."

Councilman Jack Mundie asked if the merger would create problems because HPT relies on private contractors while unionized employees provide services in Wilkes-Barre.

While Fauver said he didn't have an answer, he said it would be imperative for city and county officials to keep costs in check. If service costs exceed minimum service standards that are developed by the state, a public transportation operation can lose state subsidy, he said.

When asked by Councilwoman Jean Mope, Fauver said a merger agreement can be written for LCTA to reimburse the city for maintenance and utilities for its intermodal center.

Yannuzzi also noted that while council voted to approve the consolidation, he never signed an actual agreement approving the merger. Without a signed agreement, Yannuzzi said state operating assistance funding should have continued coming to Hazleton Public Transit, rather than being redirected to LCTA.

Fauver cited "communication gaps," but said the city has the option to maintain services as they currently exist, as long as the city comes up with the 15 percent local match to state operating assistance funding. The local match currently comes from Luzerne County, he said.

After the meeting, Fauver said if both parties agree to keep services as is, the city can either provide its own local match or continue receiving it from Luzerne County.

Council President James Perry said he believes miscommunication has led state officials to believe the city has agreed to a full-fledged merger.

Mundie, however, asked whether the city and its transportation services would be neglected if officials move ahead with consolidating.

"Once we do that could we get treated like the red-headed stepchild like we always do by the county?" Mundie asked.

Fauver, however, said principles could be developed between HPT and LCTA and dictate "how things are going to work."

"Whether you realize it or not, by going as far as you've gone you've been very aggressive and are being good stewards of public funding," Fauver told council. "We'll have weekly meetings if you want, develop principles and have a three-party agreement."

sgalski@standardspeaker.com

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